


Immortalized

by Arwennicole



Series: Life in Hell [2]
Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-03
Updated: 2017-10-30
Packaged: 2018-08-19 08:31:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8198168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arwennicole/pseuds/Arwennicole
Summary: They have escaped Negan, everyone believes they are gone. Now where do they go?





	1. Seasons Change

Savannah wrapped her arms around herself, her body shaking. Daryl pulled off his jacket. “Don’t, yer gonna get cold,” she told him.

“Just shut up and take the jacket,” he told her, wrapping it around her.

Savannah pulled the jacket in closer. “Where do you think we are?” she asked. Daryl stopped, looking back towards where they had come from.

“I’d say we’re about thirty miles out of Virginia,” he replied.

She let out a shaky breath as they came across an abandoned gas station. Daryl knocked on the window, waiting a few minutes to see if there were any walkers inside. When nothing came, they went inside. Daryl found a few hooded sweaters hanging up, tossing her one to try to keep her warm. Savannah grabbed a map, opening it up. “Which way we heading?” she asked.

“East I do know that,” he replied.  
“Then we should be heading towards Kentucky then,” she replied.  
“Sure,” he agreed.

Savannah started coughing. “Ya aright?” he asked.

“I’ll be fine,” she replied.

They left the gas station to continue on their trek. “Where are we going to go?” she asked.

“Far away from Negan as possible,” he replied.

They traveled through the day, checking every car they passed for whether they could drive it or if it had supplies of any kind. Night began to fall, they stopped to rest since it was too dark to keep traveling. Daryl started a fire as they made came next to an abandoned car. Daryl could hear Savannah coughing, he looked at her concerned. “I’m okay,” she assured him. 

“Here, eat this,” he told her, handing her broth, “It ain’t much but it’ll keep ya warm.”

She took the plastic cup and sipped on it. Daryl rubbed her knee. “I’m fine, Daryl,” she told him.

“Ya don’t look fine,” he answered.  
“Thanks,” she muttered.  
“Ya know what I mean,” he answered.

Savannah shuddered. It was going to be another long night. Daryl got into the car with her. “Come here,” he murmured. She curled up against him, shaking from the cold. He rubbed her arms and her back in the attempt to warm her up. “Yer okay,” he whispered.

They traveled for two more days, they were now walking through the mountains. Snow was beginning to fall, which was something Daryl was afraid would happen. The walkers they would encounter were able to get put down easily with a knife or he would literally pick her up and run with her since they were too slow to chase them.

During one camp stop, Daryl was building a fire as they were hiding underneath a dirty sheet for a tent. Savannah was laying on piles of filthy clothes they found in an abandoned car. She was constantly shivering, her body felt ice cold but her head, whenever Daryl checked her temperature, felt like it was molten lava. “Wish I had enough time to get my crossbow back,” he told her, trying to keep her talking.

“We didn’t have any time for anything,” she murmured.

Daryl put the metal pot over the fire, something they stole out of an abandoned campsite to melt snow into water to try to make some sort of food that Savannah could hold down. The temperature only seemed to grow colder, Daryl rubbed his hands together, trying to heat them up. “Yer gonna freeze,” she murmured.

“Nah, I’m fine,” he answered.

Savannah closed her eyes. “Hey, keep yer eyes open,” he told her. 

“I’m so tired,” she murmured.  
“I know, but ya gotta keep them open, ya can freeze out here,” he answered.  
“I’m freezin now,” she muttered, wrapping her arms tighter around herself as she shook.

Daryl moved to hide with her under their makeshift tent, his arms moving around her. “Come here,” he murmured, unzipping his jacket. He undid her sweater and jacket.

“Stop tryin to take my clothes off, I ain’t in the mood,” she muttered.  
“Shut up, gotta share body heat if we’re gonna live,” he told her.

He pulled her close, Savannah pressed her freezing body up against is. “Yer okay, yer gonna be okay,” he murmured more for himself than for her. Savannah kept shuddering when snow began to fall.

The next morning, they went back on their travels to try to find some sort of shelter. Daryl ended up carrying Savannah most of the time because of how sick she had become in the last couple of weeks trying to find shelter. It didn’t help that the snow was constantly falling, the ground was frozen. The only plus side to it was the fact the walkers couldn’t get to them. At one point, Daryl was trying to climb up a mountain having Savannah wrap her arms around his neck in an awkward piggyback as he used her knife to dig into the ground. He finally reached a metal guardrail, grabbing it he pulled them up. Savannah let Daryl go, looking out when she gasped. “What?” Daryl asked.

“Look,” she answered.

Daryl looked over what she was looking at. The valley they had been traveling through was covered in snow and ice. To Savannah it looked like the winter wonderland in the silly songs her parents insisted they would sing every Christmas. For the first time in days, Daryl saw a smile on his wife’s face. “It’s so beautiful,” she whispered. Daryl reached over, holding her hand. “Amelia would’ve loved to have seen this,” she murmured. He saw her frown and he cleared his throat, trying not to think of their children they had to leave behind.

“Can ya walk?” he asked.

Savannah turned to him. When she tried to take a step, her knees gave out and Daryl caught her. “I got ya,” he assured her. He lifted her up into his arms, carrying her as they continued moving along the trails.

It was another hour before he found a cabin, he kicked on the door, waiting for any walkers to walk over. Nothing happened. He opened the door. The cabin smelt musty and old mothballs. He put her down on the cot that was in the corner. He searched for blankets, she could hear him curse when he found only wet blankets. He looked outside to see another snowstorm coming through, making him curse. It meant the option of going out to try to find Savannah a decent meal had just dropped. Turning back to his task at hand, he tried to ignore the raging storm as he searched for blankets.

When he finally found blankets in a plastic cabinet by the door, he covered her up before he went to find some dry wood to start a fire in the fireplace. It took a while but the cabin started to warm up. Daryl knelt beside Savannah. “Hey, hey, can ya hear me?” he asked. She nodded her head slowly. He touched the side of her head. She was freezing but she was covered in sweat. “Shit,” he muttered, “Don’t ya die on me, Vannah, ya hear me?”

“I ain’t goin nowhere,” she answered tiredly.

Daryl kissed the top of her head. Daryl stroked the hair from her face. As she slept, he stood guard over her checking her breathing which was slowly turning ragged. They needed help, but where was help? 

The next morning, Daryl stood up pushing the hair from Savannah’s face. “I’m gonna see if I can get something more fillin than a rabbit,” he murmured. She let out a shaky breath, Daryl kissed the side of her head before standing up. He had no idea where they were. After the first snowstorm, he felt like he had been turned around backwards. Now he had to try to navigate through forests that he had never been in ever in his life.

Making his way through the woods, he had his handmade bow at the ready, really wishing he had his crossbow. Suddenly, he heard the familiar rumbles of snowmobiles. He reached for his gun when three snowmobiles sped over a hill, circling him. Daryl stared the three of them down as they continue to circle him. The one by one they stopped. The first one that stopped was the first to speak. “Who are you?” he demanded.

“What’s it to ya?” Daryl demanded.

The men were silent for a minute. “You’re far away from the South my friend,” he commented.

“Ain’t no friends here,” Daryl answered.  
“We’re not here to hurt you,” the man told him.  
“Yea? Heard that before,” Daryl answered.

The leader then reached up, removing his mask and his helmet. The person was a man, maybe the same age as Daryl if not a little older with chin-length auburn hair, green eyes, wearing a white snowsuit. “We don’t mean you any harm,” he assured Daryl.

“I’ve heard that so many times in this life I have the scars to prove it of how trustworthy they was,” Daryl answered.

The man showed Daryl his gun, letting the clip fall into his hand before unloading the bullet in the chamber, letting the gun drop at Daryl’s feet in the snow. The other men followed suit then removing their helmets. One man had jet-black hair, dark blue eyes, and wearing a black snow suit. The third man had sandy-blond nearly brown hair shaved close to his head and gray eyes wearing a gray snow suit. “I’m Quinton,” the first man told Daryl, “Quinton Pratt.” He gestured to the man in black. “This is Leo Schneider and Carson Hansen.” The man in gray, Carson, gave a slight wave to Daryl.

Daryl was silent for a few more seconds before lowering his gun. “Daryl,” he answered.

“What are you doing out here alone, Daryl?” Carson asked, “Are you hurt?”  
“My wife and I just got out of a bad situation,” Daryl replied.  
“Where’s your wife?” Leo asked.  
“She’s safe,” Daryl answered.

Then he was silent for a minute. Maybe they could help. “Ya’ll got a camp? She’s sick,” he told them.

“Show her to us,” Quinton told him.

Daryl suddenly felt defensive. “If you need our help we need to see her, Leo here is our physician,” Quinton insisted.

Reluctantly, Daryl led them back to the cabin.

Savannah was in and out of consciousness when she heard he door open. She felt a hand touching her forehead.

Leo frowned, feeling that her fever was high. “How long has she been like this?” he asked.

“Three…four days,” Daryl replied.

Leo listened to her breathing, frowning. “She more than likely has pneumonia,” he stated. He started checking her vitals. “Is she allergic to any medications?” he asked.

“Uh penicillin, anythin with ‘in’ in the name,” Daryl replied.  
“Limits what kind of antibiotics I can give her,” he stated, “We need to get her back if she’s going to have a chance.”

Daryl lifted Savannah up into his arms, carrying her out to the snowmobiles. “We’ll get her back to camp, you’ll ride with Quinton back,” Leo told him as they got her onto the sled there.

“I ain’t…” Daryl started to say.  
“If you want your wife to survive then let me do my job,” Leo told Daryl.

Daryl was silent as they covered her up and got her ready for transport. He watched as Leo sped back and Quinton grabbed his arm. “Let’s go,” he told Daryl. Daryl reluctantly sat on the back of the snowmobile and they sped back down the hills.


	2. The Community

They reached a tall gated community. It didn’t take Daryl long to realize that it was actually another prison with stone walls instead of gated walls.

Leo lifted Savannah out of the sled and onto a gurney. “I need her on oxygen and an IV started on her stat,” he told a woman next to him. Daryl followed after them. 

Savannah was unconscious as Leo continued to examine her. Daryl stood in the room, leaning against the wall biting his thumbnail as he watched.

After a while, Daryl stared as a heart monitor was hooked up to Savannah. “She’s stable, I have her on some other antibiotics to fight the infection that’s in her lungs,” he told Daryl.

“Thought ya said it was pneumonia?” Daryl asked.  
“She has a different form of it, she has what’s called viral pneumonia,” Leo explained, “I have her sedated right now so it’ll help her get the oxygen she needs.”

Daryl rubbed the back of his neck, looking at his wife. “She’s a strong woman it seems,” Leo told him.

“She is,” Daryl replied as he walked by Leo, sitting beside Savannah.

He looked at Leo. “Can I see my wife now?” he asked. Leo nodded, standing aside as Daryl walked by him. Daryl down beside the bed, staring all the machines she was hooked up to. He held her hand between his, moving his thumb over her wrist. “Stay with me,” he murmured, “I can’t lose no one else.” He kissed her knuckles lightly. “Especially ya,” he added. He leaned forward, resting his forehead against hers. 

Pulling back, he stared at Savannah. “Our children need their momma, we have to get back to them,” he said quietly. He stroked her hair with his free hand. All that answered him was the beeping from the EKG Machine hooked up next to her. If it weren’t for the fact his wife was fighting for her life, he would’ve been fascinated by the fact they had working machines.

The night was the worse, Savannah would gasp for air, which would startle him out of a doze. It came to the point he fell asleep with his head next to her. He pushed the hair from her face. When he put his head back down on the bed, he started to fall back to sleep. A woman with shoulder-length red hair, green eyes walked over, placing a blanket over Daryl’s shoulders. “Who know how long it’s been since he’s slept,” Carson commented from the door, making her look up. She stared at the couple before walking back over to Carson.

“Can we trust them?” she asked.  
“We’ll see what Stone has to say when they’re better,” Carson answered.

They left the room, leaving them alone to rest.

The sunlight hit Daryl’s face, waking him up. He woke up to a crick in his neck and a blanket around his shoulders. He looked back at Savannah. “How is she?” Leo asked, walking in.

“Made it through the night, that’s good right?” he asked.  
“It’s a start, Daryl, I’d like to ask you a few questions,” Leo stated.  
“About?” he asked.  
“Your wife’s health, I need to know exactly what I’m dealing with here,” Leo answered.

Daryl crossed his arms over his chest. “Aright,” he answered.

“Did your wife give birth recently?” Leo asked.  
“About two months ago,” Daryl replied.  
“A successful delivery, no complications?” Leo asked.  
“None,” he replied.  
“And you and your wife, have a healthy sex life?” Leo asked.  
“What the fuck does that have to do with anything?” Daryl demanded.

Leo stared at him. “Is there a possibility your wife can be pregnant again is why I’m asking,” he stated. Daryl’s stomach did a tight twist.

“Is she?” Daryl asked.

Leo looked at him. “Possibly,” he replied honestly.

“Well she either is or she ain’t what is it?” Daryl demanded.

Leo was silent for another second. “My tests are saying she is,” he replied. Daryl stared at Savannah. 

“Do ya know how far along?” he asked.  
“You know it’s hard these days to determine date of conception, especially since she’s been obviously nursing it makes it impossible to pinpoint,” Leo replied.

He could see Daryl’s face pale. “Is there someone else that can possibly…” Leo started to say when Daryl left the room.

Daryl stood in the hallway, trying to keep his temper under control so not to freak out any of these people. What did Negan do to her? What did he do? The idea of what he could’ve done and probably did made his blood boil. What did he do to manipulate Savannah into agreeing to do that? There was a possibility of the baby being his too, because well he and Savannah didn’t exactly follow the “Wait six weeks” rule. Hell, they didn’t do that when Amelia was born either. The few secret rendezvous they had at the Sanctuary, the very few. As in they met in the stairs and literally had two minutes before they were caught. Yet the possibility of Negan being the father made Daryl’s stomach twist so bad he slid to the floor, his fists clenching against his knees.

Savannah slowly opened her eyes to a bright light hitting her eyes, making her wince. “Welcome back,” an unfamiliar voice greeted. Her eyes grew wide and she started to panic. “Hey, hey, Savannah, Savannah, don’t panic you’re among friends,” the person told her. She saw the person nod to a woman that was by the foot of her bed, who then rushed out of the room. Seconds later, Daryl was above her.

“Hey, hey, Vannah, I’m here,” he told her.

Savannah immediately calmed down and he rested his hand on her cheek. Reaching up, she held his hand tightly. “I’m here,” he repeated. Daryl kissed the top of her head as she moved her arm around his, holding onto him.

“Where are we?” she croaked.  
“Can we get her some water?” Leo told the woman who rushed over to get some water.

Daryl took the cup and held the straw to Savannah. She sipped on it, but then she started coughing. “Hey, easy there,” he told her, “Ya scared the shit out of me.” 

“Normally it’s the other way around,” she said quietly, making him smirk.

Daryl kissed the top of her head as she let out a shaky breath, her eyes closed. “How are you feeling?” Leo asked. Savannah looked at the man wearily.

“He’s helpin us,” Daryl told her, “If it wan’t for him ya woulda been dead.”

Savannah gave him a nod. “Ya have my gratitude,” she murmured. 

“I was a surgeon before the turn, so you’re both lucky,” Leo answered.

Daryl’s brain was burning with questions, but there was a time and place and right now wasn’t the time to ask her anything.

Later, Savannah was resting. Daryl was sitting next to her, holding her hand. “Vannah…I gotta ask ya somethin,” he told her. She looked over at him.

“What is it?” she asked.

Daryl moved his thumb over his wrist. “What did Negan do?” he asked. She stared at him, resting her arm behind her head, staring at the wall. She let his hand go, pulling it away completely. Daryl frowned, staring at the bed.

“Why?” she asked.  
“The doctor was askin some questions while ya were out,” he replied.  
“What?” she asked.

Daryl bit his thumbnail, staring at her. He had to say. “He was asking…if there was a possibility ya could be pregnant again,” he replied. Savannah gripped his hand again, pulling his arm around her.

“If I am, nothing for ya to worry about,” was her only answer.

He was surprised by her words. “But…” he started to say.

“He did a lot of other things to me, but he didn’t get that far,” she answered.

She pulled him up so he was laying behind on the bed, holding her close. “Why?” he asked, “Why did ya do what ya did?”

“Surrender myself to Negan like that?” she asked, “My plan was to get ya out of there, get back to our kids.”

Daryl rested his head against hers. “We saw how well that worked,” she murmured, rubbing his arm, “And I am a fighter, Daryl, ya know I am, but god…every time I tried to even argue back with him…he’d bring our kids into the conversation.” She closed her eyes tight. “I did what I did to keep our kids safe,” she told him, “And to keep ya safe…he threatened ya even more because ya were there.”

“Because he wouldn’t physically hurt the women…” he murmured.  
“No…but he did worse to us,” she replied.

She held his hand even tighter. “So even if I am pregnant again, it’s yers,” she added. Daryl kissed the back of her head as she let out a shaky breath. “I love ya, I always have,” she told him.

“Always will,” he answered gruffly.

She moved her fingers over the star tattoo on his hand. They sat in silence, the sounds of the machines still beeping keeping an eye on her heart rate and blood pressure. 

In a large conference room, there were a group of people standing there. At the head of the table was a man, looked no more than his late thirties, looked former military the way he was built. Blond-haired, blue eyes, wearing black combat boots, dirty worn blue jeans, a gray t-shirt under a red plaid shirt. Around his neck was a chain with dog tags and a thin gold ring. “What is the medical report on the woman?” he asked.

“We think she may be pregnant, but we’re not 100% sure yet, we’re waiting for her blood work,” Leo replied.  
“Fine, she’s pregnant, but he has to go,” one man to Leo’s right insisted.

He looked like a weasel of a man with stringy black hair, green eyes, wearing black boots, black jeans, a dirty blue business like shirt. “Why? He doesn’t seem to be a threat,” the first man stated.

“He drew a gun on our men,” the second man insisted.  
“We drew too,” Caron pointed out.  
“He won’t leave without her I can tell you that much,” the red-headed woman next to Caron stated.  
“We’re wasting our energy on making sure she’s better,” the second man persisted.  
“That’s my unit, I will state when I can’t use anymore energy,” Leo answered.  
“You see the clothes that man’s wearing? We have come too far to escape Negan to have him capture us now,” the second man insisted.  
“How do we know they’re loyal to Negan, Orin?” the first man asked.  
“How do we know they’re not?” Orin demanded.  
“Nicole, do you see any reason why we should worried about him?” the leader asked.

The redhead shook her head. “No, if he was a threat he would’ve been searching for our weaknesses, he hasn’t left her side since she was brought here,” she replied.

“It could be a front,” Orin suggested.  
“I have a hard time believing a spy would spend so much time with his wife when he’s supposed to find our weaknesses,” Nicole answered.  
“I think we should let them both stay,” a man, larger than Stone stated.

His hair was long, pulled back from his face with piercing blue eyes, wearing motorcycle boots, blue jeans, a dirty faded red shirt, and a filthy beige over shirt. He gestured over to Quinton, he had been sitting quietly. “We should start trusting Quintin’s judgement,” he stated, “He hasn’t let us down before.”

“Troy’s right, when has Quinton been wrong?” Carson asked.

Stone looked at the rest of the council. “We’re putting it to vote,” he stated.

“This is bullshit,” Orin muttered.  
“All in favor for Daryl staying ‘aye’,” Stone stated.

More than half of the people at the table raised their hands. “Aye,” they said in unison.

“All opposed?” Stone asked.

Only three including Orin raised their hands. “Fine, if he brings Negan on our doorsteps, I get to say ‘I told you so’,” he stated before leaving.


	3. The Council

The days passed, Savannah grew stronger every day. Daryl hardly left her side, food was brought to them, which he would make them try first before they ate it. After the first week, Savannah was sitting up when Quinton entered the room. “Daryl,” he called out. Standing up, Daryl walked over to him. “The council wants to speak with you,” he stated.

“Ya’ll have a council?” he asked.  
“Didn’t your camp?” Quinton asked.  
“Once, that was a long time ago,” Daryl replied gruffly.

Daryl glanced at Savannah. “She’ll be fine, but our council wants to speak to you,” he stated. Nodding his head slowly, he reluctantly followed hm.

The halls were dark, it almost reminded him of one of the picture books he had as a kid, one of the few his mom would buy for him. They had torches lining the dark walls to light them up. “Yer generators don’t power up here?” He asked.

“We only use the generators for our infirmary,” Quinton replied, “Emergency use only that’s exactly what we use it for.”

Daryl stared at the walls curiously as he was lead into what looked like the cafeteria but instead it was obviously now the council room the way they had the tables circled together in the attempt to create an even larger table. There were four people sitting at the head, one man sitting in between them all. He had thinning gray hair, light blue near white eyes, wearing black boots, black jeans, a hand sewn tunic with a handmade jacket. “Hello, Daryl,” the man greeted, standing up, “I am Stone ‘Stonewall’ Masen, welcome to our Haven.”

“Hmm ya’ll come up with interesting names,” he commented, looking around.  
“I hear Quinton and some of our men found you and your wife, I hope she is recovering?” Stone asked.  
“Yeah,” Daryl replied.

Daryl just stared at him. “Why ya’ll call me here?” he asked.

“We would like to hear your story,” the woman to Stone’s right stated.  
“Why?” Daryl asked.  
“To see if we would welcome you as a permanent resident,” the man at the end answered.

Daryl just stared at them, pacing slowly like a caged animal. “What if we don’t wanna stay?” he asked.

“You’re not a prisoner here, Daryl,” Stone assured him.

He was silent, staring at him. “Where do you come from?” Stone asked.

“Georgia,” Daryl replied.  
“How many people have you killed?” Stone asked.  
“Eight,” Daryl replied.  
“How many walkers?” Stone asked.  
“I lost count,” Daryl replied.  
“Do you have any special skills?” Stone asked.  
“Good at a crossbow,” Daryl replied, “My wife’s better at knives.”

The council looked intrigued. “Your wife fights?” he asked.

“My wife can take care of herself,” Daryl answered, “We’re a team.”

Stone just smirked a little, intrigued by what Daryl had to say. “No children?” he asked.

“Ain’t gonna tell ya where they are,” Daryl answered.  
“We understand,” the woman beside Stone stated before Stone could say anything.

Daryl was silent again. “Tell us about the camp you were with before,” she said kindly.

“It wan’t no camp, was held prisoner,” Daryl answered, “Savannah and me both.”  
“How did you escape?” Stone asked.  
“Stole a bike, jumped their gate,” Daryl replied.  
“And your children are---“ Stone started to say.  
“Safe,” was his only answer.  
“Who was the leader of this place?” The woman asked.  
“Maybe ya’ll heard of him, calls himself Negan,” Daryl replied.

Stone hmmed, tapping the table. “That’s unfortunate that you were held there,” the woman said sadly, “We have never heard of anyone successfully escaping though.”

“We faked our own deaths to get out,” Daryl answered.  
“Impossible, no one can escape Negan and live,” the other man stated.

The man looked at Stone. “How do we know this isn’t some trick for Negan to find our weaknesses?” He demanded.

“I ain’t no traitor,” Daryl answered.  
“No one is accusing you of being such, Mr. Dixon,” the woman told him.  
“Don’t call me that,” he answered quickly.  
“My apologies,” the woman stated.

She looked at to the man who was now glaring at Daryl. “Orin, if he were a danger he would have been asking when he could leave by now, searching our weak points to our wall,” she explained.

“Of course you’ll defend him, Amanda,” Orin snarled.  
“Both of you stop it,” Stone ordered.

They both fell silent. “Your wife still needs rest, time to regain her strength. We will allow you to stay here, but as long as you allow us to watch you,” he stated. Daryl just stared at him.

“Ya’ll are strange,” he muttered.  
“We may be that, but your wife’s life depends on us,” Orin stated.  
“Ya threatenin her?” Daryl asked.  
“Just stating a fact, Mr. Dixon,” Daryl answered.  
“Don’t,” Daryl said gruffly.  
“Daryl has already stated once before how the name makes him uncomfortable, Orin,” Stone told him.

Daryl just stared at him. “What did you do before the turn?” Stone asked, taking control back on his questioning.

“I was being a dad,” Daryl answered, “Did what I had to do to keep my kid alive.”  
“You won’t divulge your child’s hiding place, do you think they are in danger if we knew?” he asked.  
“Ya tell me,” Daryl answered.

After what felt like hours of questioning, Quinton led him back to the infirmary. Savannah was still asleep when he took his seat by her bed, holding her hand between his. He smiled a little when Savannah gave his hand a squeeze in her sleep. “Yer gonna be aright,” he murmured, stroking her hair.

At the Hilltop, Amelia was sitting on the porch watching the snow fall. Carl put a blanket on his girlfriend’s shoulders before sitting next to her. “Should come inside,” he told her, “They’re making dinner.” She shrugged her shoulders.

“I’m not hungry,” she murmured.

Amelia wiped her eyes. Carl rubbed her back gently. She stared at the pyre area where they had burnt her parents’ bodies giving them a semi-proper funeral. She pulled her knees up to her chest as tears slid down her cheeks. 

When she went inside, she bypassed and went upstairs to her room when she heard her brother crying. Walking over to her brother, she lifted him up into her arms. “I know, I miss momma and daddy too,” She whispered, tears falling down her face, “I don’t know what it’s like to not have them both around.” She suddenly heard talking through the vents.

“Rick, we are outmanned and outgunned, trying to take the Sanctuary is suicide,” she heard Jesus say.  
“Look, things have been hard since Daryl and Savannah have been killed…” Michonne said.  
“It’s more than that,” Rick answered.  
“He killed more of your people, in his mind that’s justified because Daryl killed so many of his,” Jesus stated.  
“He dragged their bodies back here and made sure their thirteen-year-old daughter saw them!” Rick snapped, “Where’s the justification for that?!”  
“Can you honestly say you’re surprised?” Jesus asked.

Amelia sat on the floor with her brother in her arms. “We now have a responsibility to those kids, to do right by them Negan needs to be gone,” Rick answered.

“We tried that once look how well it turned out for us,” Rosita pointed out.

Amelia rocked baby Ricki from side to side. “What makes you think he’s not waiting for you to do this though?” Jesus asked, “He killed your second in command, his wife, and showed the bodies to their young daughter. What makes you think he’s not expecting retaliation for it?”

“He’s right, could be just the fight he’s looking for,” Michonne answered.  
“Daryl and Savannah did something that pissed Negan off just enough to do that to them, which means he wants to fight you because that showed Daryl was still loyal to you no matter what kind of promise he made,” Jesus explained.  
“You’re saying he’s wanting a fight,” Michonne suggested.  
“I’m saying he’s begging for one,” Jesus answered.

Amelia stayed silent as she waited on bated breath what Rick was going to say. “Then he’s going to get one, we prepare as many weapons as we can. Hide enough guns as possible, create even more for when we run out of ammo. We hide them, I don’t care how we do it but we do it. We talk with Ezekiel maybe he will be willing to help us. We send messages to each community, hidden messages, things that Negan wouldn’t think twice about,” Rick explained.

Amelia couldn’t help but smile, rubbing her brother’s back. “We have all lost people we cared about to Negan,” Jesus pointed out.

“And how many of those people do we have to lose before we do something?” Rick demanded, “How many kids have to grow up without their parents because of Negan?”

Rick looked at his friends, resting his hands on the table. “We stop this, now,” he told them.


	4. Part of my Soul

“I’m sorry, I really am but I did say no exceptions.” Daryl woke up with a jolt, looking around. He couldn’t recognize his surroundings, they were unfamiliar. It took a minute to realize he wasn’t at the Sanctuary, he wasn’t in the hole. He put his head in his hands, letting out a shaky breath. “Daryl,” Savannah said beside him. Daryl looked over at her. Savannah pushed the hair out of his eyes.

“It was my fault,” he murmured.

The images of Glenn’s death flashing before his eyes. “It’s like…a constant nightmare I can’t wake up from,” he murmured. Savannah bit her lower lip, rubbing his arm. “Glenn’s dead because of me,” he muttered. Savannah moved her arms around him as he lowered his head. “Why in the world do ya want to be with me?” He asked, “I cause ya nothin but trouble.”

“Because I love you,” she answered, “No one in the world can ever change that.”

Savannah held onto him. Daryl just stared at the floor, Savannah could see a difference in Daryl. He was even more closed off than before. “Ya shouldn’t,” he muttered, pulling away from her embrace and leaving the room. Savannah sat in her hospital bed, pulling at the scratchy blankets.

Daryl walked through the halls of the prison, heading outside. He stood in the cold, but he couldn’t feel it. “I did say no exceptions.” The words, the sound of the bat, the sound of Maggie’s wails, and Savannah’s screams. Negan didn’t kill him because he liked him, he took Savannah to torture Daryl with. To show Daryl that he had no control in anything anymore. He killed Glenn to teach him a lesson about his “no exceptions” rule. All he could think about was that night. Think about it day in and day out, he couldn’t sleep because every time he closed his eyes he would see it. He put his head in his hands and let out a shaky breath.

On the Hilltop, Amelia was sitting on the porch with her brother smiling as the baby was rocking from side to side. “What are you doing you little wiggle worm?” she quipped. 

“Hey,” Carl greeted as he walked up.

Amelia looked up and smiled a little. “Hey,” she answered.

“It’s nice to see that again,” he commented.  
“What?” she asked.  
“A smile,” he replied.

Carl took a seat next to her as she shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know,” she replied, “I smile for Ricki.” Carl smiled as he looked at the baby in his girlfriend’s arms. “I have to, he needs to know that there’s some good in this world,” she murmured.

“Even after everything you still see that?” Carl asked.

Amelia kissed her brother’s chubby cheek. “My parents believed in something, I mean…I could hate them…especially my momma because she made the choice to go to Negan. She chose my dad, but I know why,” she murmured.

“Why?” he asked.

Amelia held her brother’s tiny hand between her thumb and index finger. “She couldn’t live without him again,” she said with a shaky voice, “And she couldn’t do it anymore.” Tears fell down her face. “At the same time I hate her, because she loved my dad more than us,” she said angrily. Carl could see the tears in her eyes. 

“But you get it too,” Carl stated.

Amelia nodded as her lower lip shook. “She loved him so much, even when she insisted she didn’t anymore before the walkers appeared she was just lying to herself,” she answered. She wiped her eyes. “She married another man just to try to prove it to herself,” she told him. She sighed. “I shouldn’t be so mad that she picked dad over us, I really shouldn’t,” she insisted.

“I don’t think she went over there with the intentions of never coming back,” Carl answered.

Amelia swallowed hard as she leaned against Carl and his arm went around her shoulders.

Back at the prison, Savannah was getting into her clothes that they had brought her when Daryl walked in. “They lettin ya out?” he asked.

“Yeah, I can finally stand and eat and drink on my own,” she replied.

She looked over as Daryl leaned against the wall. “Ya got somethin to tell me,” she commented. He shrugged his shoulders.

“I think ya should leave,” he answered.

Savannah stared at him. “What are you talking about?” she asked slowly. He pressed his thumb against his bottom lip.

“Think ya should ask the council for one of their snow mobiles, somethin, go back to Amelia and Ricki,” he answered.  
“And why would I go without ya?” she asked, walking up to him.  
“Because we got kids that need their mom,” he answered.  
“They also need their dad,” she told him.

Daryl stared at her. “Ya need to leave, Vannah,” he told her.

“I ain’t goin nowhere,” she answered as she stood in front of him.  
“Why did ya come after me?” he demanded.

Savannah was silent. “What?” she asked.

“Why did ya come after me? Why did ya go to Negan surrender yerself to him?” he demanded.  
“I wanted to bring ya back,” she asked.

Daryl let out a frustrated breath as he turned his back to her for a second. “Ya can’t be that so goddamn naïve after what happened that day to think he woulda just let ya waltz in and take me back,” he snapped when he looked back at her.

“I didn’t know what to expect,” she answered.  
“Then why do it?” he demanded.  
“Because I’d rather walk through the fires of hell than going another day without ya in it!” she answered.  
“I ain’t worth walkin through hell for,” he muttered, leaving.

Savannah went after him. “Daryl!” she called out. Daryl just kept walking away from her. “DARYL!” she shouted at him. She let out a deep breath. “I made a promise to myself and to my kids that I wouldn’t go another day without ya in it! I tried it, I did it, I went as far as marrying a monster to get away from you!” she snapped, making him stop, “Because goddamn I wanted to hate ya so bad!” Daryl turend to look at her. “I wanted to hate ya, for years I tried,” she snapped, “Years fucking wasted because I wanted to find a way to prove that I didn’t want ya in my life! I did it every day for the first twelve years of our kid’s life!”

Daryl was silent, people were staring now but Savannah didn’t care. “I have loved ya since I was thirteen-years-old when everyone thought ya were NOTHING. They all thought ya weren’t worth shit, ya’d never be nothing,” she told him walking up to him, “Stupid, redneck hick with a druggie brother, a monster for a father, and an alcoholic for a mother is what everyone else thought of ya.” Savannah just kept walking closer and he just stood there. “I had no goddamn reason to love ya, no reason to even WANT you on social standards if ya want to look at it that way,” she told him.

Daryl just stared at the floor. “Yet ya were everythin to me,” she insisted, “Ya had nothin to offer but all I wanted was to get on the back of yer bike and just seein the world together because ya said ya had never been out of Georgia.” Savannah swallowed against the lump in her throat. “Livin off squirrel meat and other meat ya would catch in the woods. I didn’t care as long as I was with ya,” she told him, “But ya kept believin people over me, pushin me away, tellin me to stay away. Yer a monster, yer not worth anythin. Did Negan break ya so bad that he made ya believe that again?”

Savannah gripped the front of his shirt. “I listened to people once, Daryl, and I promised I would never do that again,” she told him. She pulled him closer. “Glenn’s death…” she started to say when she heard his breath hitch, “Wasn’t yer fault.” She looked up into his eyes to see the pain. “He was gonna find a reason to kill Glenn no matter what, because Glenn embarrassed him. He lives off the pain of others, he got into yer head, baby,” she insisted.

Savannah slowly rested her head on his chest. “Yer a better man than he will ever be,” she answered.

“How could ya pick me over our kids?” he asked.

Savannah held onto him tighter. “I chose to make a decision for myself for once in my goddamn life,” she answered. She gripped him tighter as his arms moved tighter around her. “I chose to keep my family together, I wanted my husband back with our kids that’s all I wanted,” she told him, “I needed my LIFE back because Negan stole that from me!” She let out a shaky breath. “Don’t ask me to live without ya, Daryl Dixon, I wouldn’t survive,” she told him. Tears fell down her face. “I’d raise our babies, love them more than anything like I already do, be a good momma to them, make them grow up to survive this world, but I’d be dead inside,” she told him.

“Don’t say that,” he insisted.  
“It’s the truth,” she answered, “Don’t let Negan take this away from me too.”

Daryl rested his forehead against the top of her head. “I love ya,” she whispered, “So much.”

“I love ya,” he answered, holding her closer as she cried into his neck.


	5. A Harsh Reality

The snow started to melt, winter was over and another season was on its way. Savannah’s belly grew. Yet at the same time, Savannah felt nothing but sadness. She was having another child, but her other two children couldn’t be there to enjoy this wonderful occasion.

Daryl was sitting on the walls of the prison, watching as once in a while one of the guards would fire a single arrow into an approaching walker. He pressed his thumb against his upper lip. “How are you with a bow?” Quint asked as he walked up.

“Why?” Daryl asked.

Quint held a crossbow out to him. “Something tells me you’re familiar with this,” Quint stated.

Daryl took the crossbow, frowning a bit because it wasn’t his but it still felt good to hold one again. He saw a walker slowly making its way to the wall. Quint watched as Daryl held it up and without batting an eye, released the arrow into the walker’s head. “Impressive,” Quint stated, “You’re a tracker, I can tell from the day we found you.”

“Used to,” he answered.

Quint sat next to him. “We would like you to put you as head of the hunting party,” he stated. Daryl looked at him quizzically.

“Why?” Daryl asked.  
“You’re a good tracker, good hunter, we need someone like you,” Quint stated.

Daryl just stayed silent. Staring out at the trees, in the direction of Alexandria. “Did you say them?” Quint asked. Daryl didn’t answer. “The words, did he get you to say them?” he asked. Daryl put a cigarette in his mouth, lighting it up. “Threatened your wife? Your children?” Quint asked.

“Stop,” Daryl answered.  
“He’s done it to all of us that are here, Daryl,” Quint told him.

Daryl tossed the unfinished cigarette on the ground. “I said stop,” he answered. He went to hand back the crossbow, but Quint held his hands up.

“It’s yours,” Quint stated.

Daryl let out a grunt before slinging the crossbow over his shoulder and walking away.

Savannah was looking through baby clothes when Daryl walked in. They looked at each other. Daryl walked over, sitting next to her. “What’s this?” he asked.

“Some of the women brought some baby clothes,” she answered, “Seeing what’s useable.”

Savannah looked at him, stroking the hair from his face. Daryl rested his forehead against her temple, rubbing her arm. “I shouldn’t have done it, said the words,” he told her.

“Ya were protectin our family,” she answered.  
“I betrayed everything Glenn stood for,” he told her.

Daryl looked at the floor. “I got him killed,” he added.

“Negan was going to kill Glenn no matter what, he was just finding a reason to do it,” she answered.

Savannah held onto his hand. Daryl kissed the side of her head. “We need to get home,” he told her softly.

“We will,” she answered.

Daryl rubbed her belly, feeling their baby kick under his palm.

On the Hilltop, Amelia was sitting by what she believed to be her parents’ graves. “Hi, mom,” She murmured. Amelia wiped her eyes. “Everything’s okay, Ricki’s getting big, trying to walk now,” she stated. She let out a deep breath, rubbing her knees. “It’s not fair, it’s not fair that you’re gone and I’m here,” she told them.

Amelia wiped her eyes again. “I miss you both so much,” she told the graves. She let out a shaky breath. “It’s not fair,” she said crying.

“Amelia?” Rick called out.

Amelia stood up, brushing the dirt off her jeans. “What?” she asked. Rick looked at the two graves.

“I know you miss them,” he answered, “We all do.”  
“They were my parents, I hate to tell you, Rick, you don’t know how I feel.”

Rick frowned at her. “You did this,” She said angrily, “You shot your mouth off, you got my parents killed. If you didn’t try to go after the Saviors my parents would be alive!”

“Amelia…” Rick started to say when she walked by him.

She went up to one of the women who was watching Ricki for her, picking her brother up she carried him inside. Rick watched her go, rubbing the back of his neck with a sigh.

Spring came, in the middle of the night Savannah went into labor. Daryl was by her side, holding her hand as Leo delivered their second child. “One more push, Savannah, and you’re in the clear,” Leo told her. Savannah let out a shout, her nails digging into Daryl’s arm. She felt her child leave her body and the baby’s screams filled the room. Daryl looked at the baby with shining eyes and Leo swore he saw a small smirk on the man’s face. “It’s a girl,” Leo told them. 

Daryl looked at his daughter with wide eyes, holding her in his arms. Savannah smiled, resting her hand on his arm. “Natalie,” he murmured. Daryl glanced at her. “When ya was havin Ricki, Glenn suggested Natalie if he was a girl,” he told her.

“It’s perfect,” she answered.

Daryl kissed the top of Savannah’s head. “I love ya,” he murmured.

“I love ya,” she answered.

Daryl paced the halls with Natalie in his arms, rubbing her back as she let out little noises into his neck. “Congratulations,” Quint told him.

“Go away,” Daryl answered.  
“Listen, Daryl…” Quint started to say.  
“I ain’t tellin ya why I said the words. It don’t matter, I said ‘em,” Daryl answered.  
“You didn’t mean them,” Quint stated.  
“I’m here ain’t I?” Daryl demanded.

Daryl held Natalie closer. “I got kids, kids who depend on me, a wife who needs me,” Daryl answered, “I did what I did, I can’t change it or take it back, so leave me alone.” Daryl held Natalie close, kissing her cheek.

Two days later, Daryl watched as Savananh was nursing their daughter. Savannah looked over at him. “What are ya thinkin?” she asked. 

“Our other kids,” he replied, “I wanna go back for them.”

Savannah cradled Natalie close. “I want our babies back,” she agreed. Daryl walked over, kissing her forehead tenderly. Savannah reached up, resting her hand on his cheek, and her thumb moved along his jaw. He kissed Natalie’s cheek, grabbing his crossbow. “I love ya,” she called out.

“I love ya,” he answered before leaving.

Daryl got onto his motorcycle when Stone walked up to him. “Daryl, this is suicide,” he insisted.

“They’re my kids,” Daryl answered, “I need them back.”

He secured his crossbow on his back before he started up his motorcycle. “Daryl, what will you do if they catch you?” Nicole asked.

“They won’t,” he answered.

Quint walked up with more arrows. “You’ll need these just in case,” he told his friend, handing them over. Daryl took the arrows.

“Thanks,” he answered.

Nicole gripped his shoulder tightly. “Be safe,” she murmured. Nodding, he sped off through the gates.

Daryl sped down the road until he knew he was close to the Hilltop. He hid his motorcycle, climbing off the bike. He went through the woods, keeping an eye for Walkers any Saviors. He kept his knife at the ready, walking through the forest closer to the Hilltop. Suddenly…he could hear it. The sound sent a chill down his spine, he would rather hear the heavy breathing from an approaching walker. He wished a walker was sneaking up on him, but everything was empty. A whistle, a long deep whistle.


	6. Having a Mission

Daryl stood in the woods, pressing his back up against the tree when he could hear the whistling grow in volume. The tune was haunting; it was the most haunting thing he could never get out of his head. Letting out a quiet breath, Daryl kept a grip on his knife. He slung his crossbow over his back.

His eyes went towards the Hilltop. He was so close; he was so damn close! “I know you’re here,” the Savior commented. Daryl slowly circled around the tree, his eyes never leaving the Savior. He was a tall, lanky man with brown hair and dark eyes. He had an AK-47 wrapped around his torso.

Daryl snuck over to another tree. Grabbing a rock, he tossed it over to the opposite side making the Savior turn in that direction. Moving fast, Daryl ran up behind the Savior, clamping his hand down on his mouth before thrusting the knife into the back of his head. The Savior dropped and Daryl took off running towards his motorcycle.

Reaching the road, Daryl heard the grunts and groans from walkers that were coming out of the woods. Starting up the bike, he sped off back down the hill he had come from, leaving the Hilltop behind.

Returning to Haven, the gates opened and Daryl pulled up. “Where did you go?” Orin demanded.

“Ain’t yer buisness,” Daryl replied.  
“Actually it is when you’re gone for nearly twenty-four hours,” Orin told him following him.

Daryl was silent as he walked toward the compound. “Hey!” Orin snapped, grabbing Daryl’s arm. The tracker swung around and his fist connected to Orin’s face, sending him to the ground.

“Next time I kill ya,” Daryl growled before walking away.

Daryl walked back into his and Savannah’s quarters, he found his wife asleep in their bed with Natalie sleeping in the little bassinet by the bed. Walking over to the bassinet, he reached down, picking his daughter up into his arms staring into her precious, innocent face. She had no idea what was going on, she had no idea they were in the middle of a war. She had no idea she had a brother and a sister who would love her.

Savannah woke up to him pace at the foot of the bed with Natalie in his arms. “Where did ya go?” she asked tiredly. Daryl looked over at her.

“Tried to get our kids,” He replied as he sat on the edge of the bed.

Savannah moved so she was kneeling beside him, her chin resting on his shoulder as she looked at their daughter. “We need to convince them to join us,” she whispered. Daryl looked at her and she looked up at him, their eyes locked onto each other’s. “Rick needs us,” she added.

“We ain’t gonna convince these people to fight the Saviors,” he answered.  
“Not all of them, we’ll take what we can,” she murmured.

She reached over, holding Natalie’s tiny hand between her thumb and index finger. “Rick is going to fight, ya know it, and I know it. He’s gonna need as many people as Negan’s got if he’s gonna have a chance,” she added, “If our babies are gonna get a chance. This ain’t about us, this is about our family.” 

“Yea,” he answered.

Savannah kissed his jaw before he rested his forehead against hers. They sat there silently, knowing exactly what they had to do.

Later, Savannah was dressed. Making her way through the halls with Daryl beside her. They entered the council room. “Savannah, we have to admit we were surprised when you asked to have a meeting with us,” Stone commented.

“We need your help,” Savannah replied.  
“Of course,” Stone stated, “What can we do for you?”  
“Help us fight the Saviors,” Savannah replied.

The entire room went silent. “I know most of you are Saviors who escaped Negan’s grasp just like Daryl and me. We have a friend, a brother, who is going to fight Negan and his men. Negan has killed innocent people, two of them right before our very eyes. Two very good men, one who will never meet his child that his wife was pregnant with when he was maliciously murdered,” Savannah explained, “We gotta wake up, we gotta put aside that fear. Negan’s been ruling with fear for too long.”

“We have vowed to never return to Virginia as long as Negan is alive,” Orin stated firmly.  
“Why would we put ourselves at risk?” Caron asked.  
“Because you want Negan to pay for his crimes against humanity,” Savannah replied.

Daryl was leaning against the wall, biting his thumb nail as he watched her. “Why should we risk our lives for a man we don’t know?” Orin asked.

“Rick’s a good man. He has done a lot for his family, he has sacrificed a lot and he’s lost a lot. One of the men Negan murdered…Glen…he was a good man. A good friend, he saved Rick’s life in Atlanta. Negan killed Glen as if he were nothing, using Glen to punish not just Rick but Daryl,” Savannah explained, gesturing to Daryl, “Daryl was tryin to protect his family, Negan captured him, tortured him, and brainwashed him. I lost part of my husband to Negan. I have two children…”

Savannah felt a lump form in her throat. “I have two children who think we died, we killed ourselves in order to protect them,” she explained, “Our babies think we’re dead, we want to go home, but we can’t go home without your help.”

The entire room was silent. “Please…please help us fight for our home, for our family, for our children. If not for helping us once more, then do it for your family. You have children who are going to be born hearing about Negan like a “monster in your closet” story,” she explained, “What kind of life is that?”

Savannah let out a deep breath. “Your children deserve a new world, they deserve a better world, as do your families. Negan has to be stopped, we can do it, we just need your help to do it,” she insisted.

Still, the room was completely silent. They stared at Savannah. Daryl walked over to his wife, tugging on her hand. “Come on, we don’t need ‘em,” he told her. Savannah entwined her fingers with his as they left the room.

That night, Savannah was packing Natalie’s things up as Daryl was packing up their weapons. Savannah set Natalie into her sling, kissing her soft forehead. “Where do we go?” she asked.

“Dunno, we find a new place that can help us, who can watch her,” Daryl replied.

Daryl pressed a kiss to the top of his daughter’s head, holding her tiny hand between his thumb and index finger. “Our family’s our priority, fuck all ‘em,” he added. Savannah nodded before he kissed her. There was a knock to their door. Daryl walked over and opened it, revealing Stone.

“What?” Daryl asked.  
“We came to give you an answer,” Stone replied.

Savannah cradled Natalie to her chest. “Half of us said ‘yes’, the other half is too afraid to fight, but the fight who agrees have brought together the numbers. We will help you,” Stone explained. Daryl looked at Savannah who let out a sigh of relief. “Your daughter will be safe here with the colony,” he assured them. Daryl nodded his head slowly. “When do we start?” he asked.

“Now,” Daryl replied.


End file.
